PY Salsa Blog

Salsorro Festival in Galicia Spain - November 06

In its 5th year this event is relatively unheard of out side of Spain. Yet when you consider that Spainians have more Salsa weekends than anywhere else I know of in the world (20+) then this is hardly surprising.

The event is organised by the Salsorro.com team in Santiago de Compostela and situated in the North West of Spain in the province of Galicia. Now a very interesting fact is that scientists now conclude that they can trace the ancestral DNA of the Celts who first inhabited the British Isles back to Galicia, of all places, something I was a bit skeptical about. So imagine my surprise when I arrived at the airport in Santiago de Compostela to be greeted by two Spanish gentlemen who were playing the bagpipes in kilts! Can you believe that? Maybe the scientists know what they are talking about.

Anyway onto the Salsorro event itself. The location is set in one of the most beautiful parts of Spain I have ever been to. With luscious green country side and rolling hills it was like being in Ireland or Scotland but warmer. The event is just outside the historical town of Santiago, which is an absolutely delightful place to visit.

However, I have to say that the event is neither a fully fledge Congress or a simple Salsa Weekender.

The event began with shows on the Friday inside an amphitheatre in an excellent Congress complex adjacent to the main hotel. There were shows on Friday and Saturday only in the all-seated theatre. The Saturday night shows were of a particular high standard and I could tell that much thought had been put into the selection of the line-up.

Although I had seen most of the acts/artists before, there were still one or two new acts that I was impressed with. The standard of performances in Spain has rocketed in the last 2/3 years. In the main, I really enjoyed the shows; I liked the way the presentation of each show was done via the big screens, although I do think that an MC was needed to generate a more upbeat atmosphere within the audience. I know some presenters get a bit carried away with the mike (including moi at times!) but done properly the MC can play a crucial role in setting the mood of the spectators and add to the overall effect and atmosphere of the shows.

Onto the parties: and this is where Salsorro perhaps need to do some re-thinking. Friday and Saturday parties were certainly well attended, however due to the shape and acoustics in the “hall” where the parties were held neither night generated the energy or atmosphere that the event deserved.

Let me stress that this was no way due to the DJs or how the music played and not really the organisers fault since it was the first time they had held the parties in this particular venue. As a promoter these things sometimes happen regardless of how much time you spend planning, and it was just one of those occasions when it didn’t seem to work. The hall was just not conducive to holding a salsa party and I know that next year will be better.

The real problem with the Salsorro Festival is that after the Saturday night party Sunday is a bit of an anti-climax. Although there are some workshops on Sunday they are optional extras and not included in the basic full pass price, this tended to put people off. The Sunday party takes place in a small club in the idyllic town of Santiago but is not what you would call a Congress party and is more of traditional Congress after party.

Personally I really enjoyed going into the town …which is truly beautiful…I though it was a bit of a shame that the event seemed to fizzle out on the Sunday. To my mind the organisers have to decide what they want this Festival to be, if a major international Congress then they need to go for it and put Galicia on the world salsa map. I think the Salsorro Festival whilst not the biggest I have attended in Spain has real potential to be one of the best in years to come. The organisation was first class and the shows and workshops were well received by everyone I spoke with. I really enjoyed the weekend and would recommend more people from Europe to give it a go.